wXw’s annual Superstars of Wrestling show saw a host of familiar names from outside descend on a sold-out Turbinenhalle, where WALTER and Ilja Dragunov put on yet another classic… but not in the main event.
We started off watching the German feed, since it was up first, with Sebastian Hollmichel and Christian Bischof on commentary, and it’s Sebastian who tells us that our main event will be the wXw women’s title match
Billy Gunn vs. Emil Sitoci
Introduced as the “Ass Man”, Billy Gunn’s first act was to ask if everyone liked the Attitude era, and had two words for everyone who wasn’t down with wXw.
It’s a split crowd for the opening match of the night, and it’s a deliberate start as Gunn took Sitoci to the corner, before charging down Emil with a shoulder block… only for Felix Schultz to block a crotch chop. Instant heat right there for the ref! Wash, rinse, repeat, and this time Felix doesn’t get in the way, as Sitoci tries to respond with a hiptoss… and better luck next time!
Indeed, it was better luck the second, and third time, as Gunn powdered into the front row, and when “Mr Ass” returned, it was more of the same as he had to avoid Emil… before decking him with a forearm as the Dutchman attempted a plancha. There’s punches for Sitoci as he was draped on the edge of the apron, but the last one knocked him down to the floor and reset the count as Gunn had looked to win via count-out.
When Sitoci returned to the ring, Gunn kept up on him, throwing more punches in the corner before missing with a Stinger splash. That gave Emil a chance to make a comeback, almost winning with the split-legged moonsault, before avoiding a Famouser and hitting the Snapmare driver for another close near-fall! However, Sitoci crashed and burned with a top rope elbow, allowing Gunn to hit the Famouser for the win. A WWE-style match, which was to be expected… and that’s not a bad thing… nor was the split second of the music they used for Billy. Bewp Bewp. **¾
We’ve got a Shotgun clip to build up the Dirty Dragan Trial Series… because his next match is up… now!
Dirty Dragan Trial Series: Dirty Dragan vs. Joey Mercury
Dragan hasn’t dyed his hair any differently this time, and he’s up against “Authority” Joey Mercury, complete with street fight jeans and nothing else. Well, it saves on having gear, eh!
We’ve the customary duelling chants before the match, as Mercury swung Dragan into the ropes from the opening tie-up. They try to grapple on the mat, but it led to a stalemate before Mercury grabbed the head… and went through the shove off and shoulder block series. Hiptosses and dropkicks keep Dragan on the back foot – and send him to the outside – where Mercury insisted that the count be held up so Dragan could make it back inside.
It’s more of the same as Mercury looked to work over Dragan’s arm, before inadvertently sending Dragan into the ropes where he issued some receipts for earlier, by way of hiptosses and dropkicks! Dragan’s almost mocking Mercury with his rope-holding offer, and he pays for it as Mercury kicks him to the floor instead. This time, Joey isn’t holding up the count, and Dragan’s forced to dive in at the last possible second as Mercury tried to claim that the ref was playing favourites.
Dragan’s thrown outside again, and he returns to the ring to take a neckbreaker that almost ended the match. Mercury keeps up on Dragan with some punches from above, before slapping Dragan as he got annoyed at the crowd’s lack of cheers for him. Fair enough… but it almost costs him as Dragan rolled him up for a two-count, before Mercury threw him outside yet again. Mercury keeps breaking the count as he wore down Dragan with punches on the outside, before fake-rolling him into the ring, just so Dragan could fall back onto the concrete floor. The noise he made on landing… yeesh. Joey grabs Thommy Giesen’s microphone to mock the referee’s count, and does the same thing again as the crowd cheer Mercury despite him bullying everyone, including Thommy.
Back inside, Dragan rolls up Mercury for another near-fall, as his comeback continued with clotheslines and an X-Factor, before a hanging neckbreaker left Mercury reeling… but Dragan holds on when Mercury tries throwing him outside yet again, and returns in with a sunset flip. A flip that Mercury sat down on and grabbed the ropes… only to be caught cheating, before letting go as Dragan took the win! This was a very basic match that I think would turn some people off at how repetitive it was, but on a show like Superstars, it’s to be expected. I liked the story of Mercury underestimating Dragan, even being nonchalant with his cheating, before eventually getting caught out. That’s two wins for Dragan now, and he’s building steam in his trial series! **
Alexander James vs. Mil Muertes
Originally planned for the pre-show vs. Francis Kaspin, James was pulled onto the main card for a short-notice match against Lucha Underground’s Mil Muertes.
We start with Muertes showing off his power, shoving James into the corner from the tie-up, before they trade off on shoulder blocks… but again, Muertes wins out. James tries to mix it up with chops, but it’s like hitting granite as Muertes hit back and sent James crumbling to the mat with a chop and a lariat. Clotheslines in the corner come next as James really struggled to get out of the gates, finally making a mark with some boots out of the corner, before getting caught in a vicious chokeslam! That looked sharp and nasty! As did that plancha from Muertes, who kept on top of James before playing to the crowd.
A DDT onto the apron keeps James down as Muertes was on fire (not literally…), but all of a sudden James mounts a comeback after sidestepping a charging Muertes, who hits the post, then the crowd after an uppercut from the American. Back inside, James cranks the neck of Muertes, and almost gets a submission out of it, only for Mil to fight back to his feet… and run into an uppercut or two.
James looks to add to the pain with a Muta lock-style hold to the arm, before a trapped arm armbar almost turned into a pinning attempt, but Mil’s foot got to the rope instead. The pressure’s kept up on the arms as James looked to go for the Coat of Arms, but instead tried to force Muertes into bowing… which was a bad move as the luchador began a comeback, only to have his arm snapped away.
A spear out of nowhere put Mil back in it, as did a back body drop and some lariats, before a big right hand almost put James down for the count. Muertes keeps up the pressure with some clubbing forearms, but he’s caught up top by James’ gamengiri before he was brought crashing down to the mat with the Rains of Castamere (Tower of London) for a near-fall.
Muertes shrugged it off and almost won with a scoop slam, before a uranage was fought out of by James, as the American worked into a ripcord back elbow for a near-fall. A TKO from Muertes keeps things nice and even, but James mounts one more flurry of offence, taking him down with a low dropkick, before a La Magistral cradle got the win – despite James having his feet on the ropes and Mil having a shoulder up. Iffy finish aside, I loved this match – don’t get me wrong, I see the value in the ex-WWE guys being on the card, but this match was night and day to those matches. Another clinic from James, and if only I could legally see Lucha Underground… Mil Muertes would probably be my cup of tea too! ***½
Lucky Kid vs. Jay Lethal
Lucky Kid was arguably the star to come out of 16 Carat Gold weekend, and with RISE now on the side of the righteous, the sky could well be the limit for everyone’s favourite Young Lion.
There was no Tarkan Aslan by his side tonight though, after he got sick of Lucky Kid refusing his devious tactics against Zack Sabre Jr. last month. Lucky’s up to his usual mind games though, as he trips Lethal early on before sending him outside so he could… yeah, spring off the ropes, plop himself on his backside and laugh. The crowd LOVE that spot now.
Back inside, Lethal quickly throws Kid onto the apron and dropkicks him to the floor, before he faked out his own dive a la Lucky… which makes him think he’s found a kindred spirit, or at least, a friend, as Lucky clings onto Jay’s leg. Lethal didn’t take kindly to that, and waffles Kid with a hiptoss and a low dropkick for a near-fall, before whipping Lucky hard into the corners for a near-fall.
Lethal channels Ric Flair with a Figure Four… but Lucky rolls him up for a near-fall as Lethal’s forced to change his gameplan, only to get smashed with a handspring elbow that earned Lucky barely a one-count. Some grounded headscissors keep Lucky in it, but licking Lethal’s bald head was perhaps the wrong way to go as Jay fires back and… baseball slides into a chop!
Lucky struggles with a suplex as Lethal keeps blocking it, as the back-and-forth eventually saw the former ROH champ land the move after winning the tug-of-war. For what it’s worth the German commentary team were really emphasising Lethal as a former TNA guy more than anything else, but then again, that’s not surprising given one promotion has had TV in Germany and the other… has not. A baseball slide takes Lucky to the outside, but Kid uses a 619 on the apron to knock down Lethal as they swapped places… but we still don’t get a tope as a Jay’s back in with a superkick… and now we get a tope as Lucky fell into – and knocked over – a bunch of chairs in the front row!
The receipt follows pretty quickly as a somersault plancha from Lucky knocks Lethal down on the floor, before the pair return to the ring to trade right hands and forearms. The back-and-forth sees them block each other’s moves, including the Lethal Injection, until Lucky lands an Asai DDT for a near-fall… but out of nowhere, Jay hits the Lethal Combination, before his top rope elbow’s stopped… so he switches into that Figure Four!
Lucky manages to grab the ropes to break the hold… so Jay keeps kicking at his legs before taking him up for a superplex, only to get caught with a Ligerbomb out of the corner as Kid almost took home the win. Lethal turns up the tempo pretty quickly from there, going to the ropes for the handspring into the Lethal Injection, and that’s all folks. A pretty good match, and another defeat for Lucky Kid against the latest import – how will that play out when Tarkan Aslan returns? ***½
Post match, Lethal and Lucky do the RISE finger touch, and Lucky’s all happy with himself.
Amazing, Spectacular, Invigorating, Monumental, Wonderful and Historic Absolute Andy Experience featuring M.G (Absolute Andy & Melanie Gray) vs. Killer Kelly & Marius al-Ani
We get split entrances, so wXw don’t have a nameplate for Andy’s absolutely ridiculous (but still, fan-voted) choice of team name, but Thommy does read it out, like the pro he is.
One day, yer da’ is gonna get it…
The rules of the mixed tag match in wXw meant that there would be no intergender… legally, anyway. Andy started by high fiving and shoving Melanie into the ropes, and since we’re now on the English feed, we’ve got the dulcet tones of Jurn Simmons and Rico Bushido here as Melanie tries to stretch out after Andy bumped into her… she tagged out, and that gave Marius al-Ani all the excuse he needed to charge in and lay into Andy, featuring a nice deadlifted back body drop.
A low bridge took Marius outside as Andy was annoyed at Melanie sandbagging herself as she stretched out her leg… it took he and referee Tassilo Jung to move her (and probably a disc in their spine!) before Kelly came in to take advantage of the situation… all while Jurn threw shade like there was no tomorrow. A missed head kick from Kelly led her into a Finlay roll from Gray as a tag out got us some more fired-up Marius… until Andy poked him in the eyes, that is!
Marius quickly shrugs that off, but his leaping ‘rana is stuffed as Andy goes to the abdominal stretch, complete with some extra help from Melanie on the apron. God I love that spot, especially the eventual pay-off… when they get caught! Except Tass’ running kick was caught… so he pokes Andy in the eye. I. Am. Howling.
Another tag out gets us back to the women, with Kelly grabbing a cravat with some knees, before booting Melanie and going back to that cravat. Gray ends up in the corner for the Shibata-ish dropkick (“shades of Tugboat”), before Andy tripped her in the middle of a dive attempt… earning himself a charge from Marius al-Ani, who leapt over the turnbuckles into his former partner.
Back inside, Andy catches Marius’ crossbody, but al-Ani escapes and nails a dropkick instead before Melanie low bridges him to the outside… so Killer Kelly takes over?! Andy kisses her on the forehead… and that’s death. Kelly unloads with kicks to Andy’s legs, before tripping him into the corner as he got the Shibata-ish dropkick too. Melanie returns to attempt another Finlay roll, but she’s shoved off into the corner, where Gray distracts the ref as Andy hits a brutal F5. Good God that looked nasty, particularly from the hard camera…
Marius pulled out Melanie as she tried to steal the cover, before her attempt to slap Marius saw her hit the ring post. Whoops! We’re back to Marius and Andy for a spell… and although Andy thought he’d blocked a frog splash with his knees, Marius is able to recover by turning it into an ankle lock. Andy rolls through, but it just sent Marius to the apron as he slung himself back into another ankle lock… before another roll through led to Marius spearing Melanie off the apron. Good God, we’re here for the wacky bumps.
Kelly’s back in to pick up for Marius with an ankle lock of her own, scissoring the leg before Marius used the situation for a nice step-up elbow drop… just as Melanie came back to try and slap Marius. He blocks slaps and a low blow, holding Melanie in place for a German suplex from Kelly, who followed up with a body press to the floor, as Marius… gets caught up top in another frog splash attempt.
Andy tries a top rope ‘rana, but Marius blocks it as Kelly does the Andre slam, allowing Marius to finish off with a frog splash for the win! Well then, despite losing at True Colors, Marius got a win back over Andy… and that was quite the enjoyable outing for the “rookies” against (deep breath) the Amazing, Spectacular, Invigorating, Monumental, Wonderful and Historic Absolute Andy Experience featuring M.G. Well worth a rewatch, regardless of your takes on “intergender” wrestling. ***½
wXw Shotgun Championship: Christopher Daniels vs. Bobby Gunns (c)
Andy Jackson is back on commentary for Jurn here, and oh yes, the “Gunns… Bobby Gunns” chants still live on! Good job the Irish crowd aren’t collecting royalties!
Gunns started out on offence against Daniels, making a point with a hiptoss out of the gates amid duelling chants… but Daniels returned the favour before indulging in a little mockery. Daniels works the arm for a spell, before things worked into a stalemate. Bobby tried his luck next, but he just runs into a dropkick before a headlock just saw him shoved into the ropes for the usual shoulder tackle.
Daniels runs back with a springboard moonsault as he goes back to the head, only for Bobby to escape and throw some uppercuts in the corner, ahead of a Downward Spiral into the turnbuckles. Gunns keeps up with chops to the ribs before going for a single leg crab, which ended as Daniels crawled into the ropes. More rough-housing from Gunns keeps Daniels down as a kick to the head leads to an Indian deathlock that almost pinned Daniels.
Daniels has to fight out of a back superplex, and succeeds in doing so, before leaping back into the ring to take down the Shotgun champion with a clothesline. That sparks a comeback for Daniels, whose axehandle smashes led to a swift STO takedown, before a Blue Thunder Bomb almost led to a new champion. Gunns tries to cut off Daniels with a guillotine, but he’s just charged into the corner as Rico Bushido clarifies what kind of hooker Bobby is… meanwhile, Daniels’ Fisherman’s suplex almost gets the win again as the pair trade off, leading to a Flatliner from Daniels! More back-and-forth led to a backslide from Daniels, then an enziguiri, as the Angel’s Wings followed… but Gunns was too close to the ropes and was able to get his foot to the rope to save his title!
Daniels has to abort a Best Moonsault Ever attempt, as Gunns uses the referee as a human shield before charging at his challenger with an armbar, eventually switching it into the Swish armbar for the submission. A fun title defence as Gunns claimed another big name scalp to his ever-growing collection – and a fine showing in defeat from Daniels, who got the “Please come back” chants. ***¼
wXw World Tag Team Championship: RISE (Ivan Kiev & Pete Bouncer) vs. Monster Consulting (Avalanche & Julian Nero) (c)
This was a rematch from Shotgun this past week, when a video run-in from Da Mack distracted Pete Bouncer. Unfortunately, Da Mack’s injury has put that storyline on the back burner, as RISE look to reclaim the titles that they originally won a year ago (albeit in the form of the Young Lions).
Jurn’s back on commentary here with Rico as we start with Ivan Kiev rolling away from Avalanche as he tried to out-pace his larger opponent… before bouncing off of him with a crossbody. Yeah… Nero’s in next as the champions score a double shoulder block before a diving splash from Avalanche left Kiev on the mat. Kiev’s kept in the corner as Avalanche gives him a number of shoulder charges… five, to be exact, before Kiev’s attempt at a fightback ended with the big boot of Nero. Pete Bouncer gets the tag in as RISE tried some double-teaming, with a scissor kick/sidewalk slam combo getting a near-fall on Nero, before Bouncer dumped Nero with a slam ahead of a leaping elbow.
Nero’s isolated for a spell, but he recovers with a missile dropkick before bringing Avalanche back in with some big lariats to RISE, followed by some apt avalanche charges into the corners. Poor Kiev gets slammed and splashed as Avalanche crushes him, before bringing Nero back in for the Final Consultation – the double-team Go To Sleep… but Bouncer makes a save as RISE combined for a Blockbuster/side Russian legsweep double-team.
Nero’s back in as he ducks a superkick, with Kiev taking out his own man, allowing Nero to hit the Wasteland, before getting caught up top as he climbed the corner right next to Bouncer. RISE looked for another double-team as that Bad Bones fan got really distracting, but Avalanche is back to top it… only for Jay Skillet to leap onto the apron for a distraction. Francis Kaspin comes in through the other side of the ring and lays out Avalanche with a belt shot, and there’s the DQ! Why, Jay FK, why?! This was a nice little tag team match which, clearly set-up for the interference at the end, had none of the hallmarks of such matches as you never got the sense they were just killing time until the big happening. ***
Post-match, Jay FK finished off that Tower of Doom that was being worked on, before throwing out referee Felix Schulz. RISE tried to make a save, but Kaspin still has that belt and knocks down Ivan Kiev as Jay FK laid out Bouncer with a uranage/backcracker combo. I think Rico may have hit a little too close to home on commentary, mind you, when he told Jurn that he was “very familiar with their tag team handiwork.” Quite. Bouncer is helpless as Kaspin uses the belt on him, before Nero’s missile dropkick is stopped with another belt shot, as Avalanche finally clears the ring, only for yet another belt shot to knock him down as Jay FK left with the belts.
Well then, it seems that the aggression that Jay Skillet showed last year against RINGKAMPF has finally spread to Francis Kaspin – and everyone’s favourite wholesome boys… aren’t.
A video package for the world title match follows, building up Ilja vs. WALTER as a piece of German wrestling history. They’re not wrong. It was all about sportsmanship, until WALTER booted the referee at True Colors, and now, it’s a little more personal…
wXw World Unified Wrestling Championship: WALTER vs. Ilja Dragunov (c)
Since he was brought back into wXw by WALTER, Ilja’s title shots seem to have been heavily influenced by der Ringgeneral… which I’m not complaining about because those two have produced matches that have been nothing short of magical.
WALTER, wearing his Carat-gold trunks, refuses to shake Ilja’s hand, and we’re underway! The pair roll around the ropes from the initial tie-up as Ilja seemed a little perturbed by WALTER’s changing attitude, but he’s in with the first chops before WALTER grabbed the head and sparks a series of back-and-forth shoulder blocks. From there, WALTER throws Ilja to the outside, but Dragunov keeps up with the chops, and I think you know where this is going… but first, WALTER rudely shoves Ilja into the ringpost before chopping it.
More chops from Ilja delay the inevitable, as does Dragunov throwing the arm into the ringpost again since he’s finally figured out – you need to disable both hands to stop the chop. It’s a smart move from Dragunov, who also tried to keep WALTER on the mat, as a back senton to the arm further weakened the chopping arms.
Despite that, WALTER’s able to boot Ilja in the face, before going for a Gojira clutch, only for the follow-up butterfly suplex to be avoided as Ilja remained one step ahead of der Ringgeneral, squashing him with a back senton to keep his challenger on the mat. Ilja’s back to the chops as he switches focus between that and the arms, successfully keeping WALTER at bay. Avalanche clotheslines work, but then WALTER tries a chop… only to get taken down to the outside with a Torpedo Moscau!
A tope from Dragunov sent WALTER into, and over, the front row, before targeting the chopping arm yet again, throwing it into the ring apron as WALTER could only muster some big boots in return. WALTER tries to fight back with a sleeperhold, but Ilja escapes and slingshots into a rope-hung neckbreaker back into the ring. There’s your turning point…
Dragunov’s almost begging off as he went into the ropes, giving WALTER a chance to stand on him before throwing some kicks… the one body part Ilja hadn’t targeted! A Zack Sabre Jr-like neck snap comes next, before WALTER runs through a chop from Ilja and drags him into a nasty-looking Lion Tamer. With his hands behind his back, a la the RINGKAMPF pose, WALTER put the boots to Ilja… but Dragunov tries to go back to the arm and throws some more chops, only to get taken down with a DDT as WALTER decided that Ilja’s neck was the weak point.
On the apron, WALTER drags Dragunov between the turnbuckles and pulls back on Ilja’s head, before going in for a cravat. Dragunov escapes and returns fire with lariats, but a pair of big boots from WALTER spun him around and down to the mat for a near-fall, as WALTER’s hard-hitting offence slowly began to creep into the equation. More kicks from WALTER follow, but an enziguiri from Dragunov stops the tide, as does a bodyslam as Dragunov brought the big man down!
A crushing back senton off the top rope gets Ilja a near-fall, but WALTER’s straight back up into a sleeperhold, before looking to switch it into a Fire Thunder Driver… but Ilja slips out into a rear naked choke of his own… which WALTER broke free of by climbing the ropes and falling onto his back! The pair trade off on rear naked chokes, with Ilja surprising WALTER with a RINGKAMPF German suplex, but that just angered der Ringgeneral into giving him a Torpedo Moscau. HUH?!
Ilja’s still laughing, so WALTER goes toe-to-toe as they go back to the chops… and after taking some free shots, WALTER replies with a big boot before taking more chops. WALTER’s first attempt at a chop is blocked as Ilja took him into the corner for a Ligerbomb, getting a near-fall before another Torpedo Moscau was countered with a Gojira clutch! Ilja’s still got an exit plan though – as WALTER’s injured hand was his way to freedom, before some wrist-clutch lariats were duly returned in kind, as WALTER decked Ilja with a clothesline of his own.
A powerbomb’s attempted by WALTER next, but he couldn’t get Ilja up… and instead a deadlift back body drop sent the Austrian flying, before he returned with a slap to the face and finally a one-handed powerbomb! The folding pin only gets a near-fall as WALTER goes back to the Lion Tamer, stomping Dragunov’s head into the mat before flipping it into a STF… but again, WALTER’s hand was the weak point as Ilja got free again. Only to get stomped repeatedly in the head and neck.
WALTER swings and misses with a lariat, allowing Ilja to fight back… but finally, WALTER throws a chop and takes down the champion for a near-fall! Wisely, WALTER doesn’t go back to the chops though, brushing Ilja with boots, almost decapitating him with one before a crucifix bomb from Dragunov drew a near-fall ahead of a Fujiwara armbar… and with Ilja switching sides to prevent a rope break, WALTER’s left with no choice but to tap! WOW. Well, if you’re one of those guys who hates on these matches because “it’s all chops”, I present to you, exhibit A. ONE chop from WALTER, which which was more out of defiance than anything else, and these two still knocked it out of the park. No, Ilja didn’t come out unscathed, thanks to a bunch of stomps to the neck, but he left with his title intact… and perhaps now, that’s WALTER vanquished for the time being, as he finally shook hands after the match. If you’ve followed their matches, this was absolute perfection – although not the grandiose spectacle of, say, Carat, this played off of their series to a tee. This’ll feature very highly in everyone’s end of year lists, that’s for sure. *****
Thommy Giesen noted that usually that would have been the main event, although wXw is switching it up. There’s no grandiose “hey, we’re giving the women a chance”, it’s something that they’ve just done without any fanfare. I like the whole understated nature of that move – doing it without trying to score brownie points.
wXw Women’s Championship: Tenille Dashwood vs. Toni Storm (c)
It’s another debut here, with the former Emma headlining in the Turbinenhalle, and we’ve got the big match introductions here, with Rainer Ringer in as your referee.
Jurn’s back on commentary as I swear Rico’s reading song lyrics… meanwhile Toni and Tenille start the feeling-out process, with Storm going for the arm, and Dashwood doing her best to escape and reverse it… in the process somehow pulling out some of Toni’s hair!
The pair acknowledge the duelling chants, but Dashwood uses it as a way to try and sucker in Toni, eventually taking her down with some headscissors… that Toni easily backed out of. Dashwood sweeps the leg and tries to get a pin, but it’s barely enough for a one-count as the former Emma offered a handshake… which wasn’t forthcoming, so the two women laid into each other with forearms as this became more akin to a hockey fight.
A kick to the knee, then a running boot sent Dashwood down, but she replies by suckering Toni into the ropes for a pratfall as the challenger looked to edge ahead. Dashwood keeps up with a hanging neckbreaker in the ropes, sending Storm to the floor, before joining her as we get some chops around the front row. Toni sent Tenille into the ring post, but her chop connected with nothing but the ring post before Dashwood lifted her up into the apron.
Tenille clears the front row as Toni blocks a Brookesing, but instead Storm lands a drop toe hold into the front row, before clearing some chairs as she placed Tenille in a seat for a hip attack… which misses as Toni crashed and burned! Dashwood takes it back into the ring, but Toni counters with a Muscle Buster-like Fisherman’s suplex for a near-fall! Hip attacks looked to follow, but Dashwood escaped and catches Toni in a Tarantula before a butterfly suplex gets a near-fall for the challenger. Another Fisherman’s suplex from Storm turns it around, but Dashwood catches Toni up top before pulling her down hard as Tenille hits the Emma-mite Sandwich in the corner for a near-fall.
Storm hits back with some kicks and a roll-up, but that’s just the set-up for a Strong Zero… which Dashwood backdrops out of and nearly wins as she sat down on an attempt at a sunset flip. Again, Dashwood keeps up the pressure by going up top, connecting with a crossbody for a near-fall, before Storm tries to snatch the win with a small package – a hold that was reversed back-and-forth for a bunch of near-falls. From there, Toni rocks Tenille with a headbutt, and it’s only a matter of time before a German suplex and the Strong Zero put an end to an extremely competitive outing. A fun main event, even if the result wasn’t in doubt – and hopefully this’ll be the first of many women’s main events for wXw! ***½
Post-match, Storm finally got her handshake as the pair hugged as the show came to a close with footage of Jay FK in black-and-white, staring at the tag titles they stole, while Jurn plugged “great action with the technical wizard himself, Zack Sabre Jr., against the worst human being in the world, David Starr.” Don’t sugar the pill, eh Jurn?
After the first two matches, I have to admit I was getting worried. Although there was nothing as bad as the Buff Bagwell match from last year, the pace of the first two matches was jarring with what wXw usually puts on… which was to be expected. However, once we moved on from folks who were “former WWE, sometimes indy stars” towards those who are still active, things really picked up.
All things considered, wXw’s annual show for the “casual” fans was quite the success, selling out the larger room in the Turbinenhalle, despite taking place just days before WWE had a SmackDown live event in the same city. Once you got past the opening two matches, it was business as usual for wXw, with the show picking up and never looking back. Far from a throwaway, developments with Jay FK were perhaps the biggest shock, while the stories with Absolute Andy, Marius al-Ani, Killer Kelly and Melanie Gray continue to roll on in gripping fashion.
Available now on wXwnow.de and soon on HighSpots – go out of your way for the key matches here!